Student Financial Services

Washington University in St. Louis will introduce two pilot grants to help low-income first-year students buy college necessities. They include a $500 grant to cover or offset the cost of a computer and a $1,500 startup grant to cover necessities such as books, winter clothing and housing supplies. The grants are for first-year students entering in fall 2019 from families with less than $75,000 in family income or who are receiving a federal Pell Grant.

​Washington University in St. Louis departments are encouraged to considering hiring qualified students for part-time jobs through the Federal Work-Study Program. The U.S. Department of Education covers 50 percent of a student’s pay, and the university department pays the rest.

Work-study students are available to perform a variety of campus jobs. The federal government will cover 45 percent of a student’s wages.

Michael Runiewicz has been named director of Student Financial Services at Washington University in St. Louis. Previously, Runiewicz was associate director of Student Financial Services. Runiewicz replaces Bill Witbrodt, who retired after more than 20 years of service to Washington University June 30.

Student Financial Services can help departments hire part-time student workers for the 2011-12 academic year. Departments hiring eligible federal work-study students pay only 50 percent of the student’s total earnings; the other 50 percent is covered with U.S. Department of Education funding. Work-study-eligible undergraduates worked in more than 170 university departments and offices during the 2010-11 academic year, and their work activities ranged from coordinating university-wide blood drives to serving as tutors.